Anniversary
by Jade II
Summary: Set during that missing year. Laura Roslin has a visitor. AdamaRoslin


"Alright everybody, that's it for today. I will see you all on Monday, and don't forget that I'll be testing you on this week's math!"

The familiar sounds of chairs scraping across the floor and paper rustling as the children's desks were cleared filled the school tent. The occasional "Goodbye Ms. Roslin!" or "Thank you Ms. Roslin!" filtered through the rest of the students' excited chatter, and Laura smiled in response before she turned to wipe the day's work off the blackboard.

The hubbub behind her quickly died down, and by the time she had rinsed the sponge and put the chalks away ready for tomorrow the last of her students had filed out and left her alone.

She turned to clear the papers from her desk and started when she saw Bill Adama standing on the other side of it.

"Hello, Laura," he said, smiling at her reaction.

Her shocked expression turned into a grin and she stepped around the desk to embrace him. "Bill," she said warmly. "It's been a long time, it's good to see you."

He nodded in acknowledgement and they pulled away slightly to look at each other. "I thought you might want some company tonight," he told her.

She returned his nod, her smile growing slightly more somber again. "That's good of you. I didn't think anybody would remember."

Bill spread his arms wide and raised his eyebrows amiably. "Well, here I am."

"I'm glad." Laura took one of his arms as he lowered them again. "Come on, let's go back to my tent."

He put his hand over hers and they walked outside.

"I'm sorry about the lack of space," Laura said, securing the flap of the tent behind them.

Her small home was almost entirely taken up by the remodelled armchair which served as her bed and a large table. The table held a half-used candle and a picture frame, with the remainder of the space covered in tattered books and old pieces of paper with endless notes written on the back and in the margins and anywhere else there was any space left. Somewhere underneath it all were a pen and a pencil stub, as well. There was a narrow wooden stool under the table which one of her older students had made for her, along with some boxes containing various odds and ends, and in the tiny area of floor space left there stood a makeshift stove, next to which lay some cooking utensils and food in a small crate.

"Nah, it's… cosy." Bill lifted the stool out from under the table and looked around for somewhere to set it back down.

"Here," Laura said, pushing the food crate underneath the armchair-bed with her foot and moving the stove as far as she could towards the side of the tent. She sat on the bed and lit the candle on the table, and Bill squeezed the stool in next to her. When he sat down their legs were touching, but there was no room to move even if she'd wanted to. She put a hand on his knee instead. "So, how's life aboard Galactica? You've still got that moustache, I see."

"Yeah, I do." Bill chuckled, raising a hand to touch said moustache. "Life is… the same, I guess. And yours?"

"The same. Part of me is still glad to be teaching again, but…" She pressed her lips together, looking at him.

He nodded, understanding. "But."

They sat there nodding in quiet acknowledgement of each others' discontent for a long moment before Bill cleared his throat and asked, "And the baby?"

Laura turned her hand around on his knee and held it palm-upwards. "And the baby… still seems just like any human child. I'm around her so often now, I keep catching myself starting to become attached…"

"That's a dangerous thing to feel, even now."

"I know." Laura sighed. She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to chase the worries away, and when she opened them again she reached for one of the boxes under the table and pulled out a bottle and two mismatched glasses. "Ambrosia?" she asked Bill, already handing him one of the glasses.

"I would love some," he said, the look on his face pleasantly surprised as he held up the glass for her to fill. "Where the hell did you get it?"

"Oh, the parents give me things sometimes," Laura explained, pouring some for herself. "Usually I try to discourage them, but this I couldn't turn down." Their eyes locked, and she held up her glass. "To Billy," she said, in a voice which all of a sudden was wavering. They drank, and her gaze wandered to the framed photograph which sat on her table. "One year," she said, shaking her head. "It doesn't seem like a year. It seems like forever, or like a couple of days, but not a year."

"Time is a very strange thing," Bill replied. She could see him looking at her out of the corner of her eye.

She nodded. "That it is." She took another sip of her drink, shaking her head. "Two years ago I could never have imagined the year that followed. One year ago I could never have imagined living like this. Makes you wonder where we'll all be next year."

Bill cleared his throat, and somehow she could hear a grin behind it. "Who knows, maybe we'll have found Earth."

Laura smiled mournfully. "Well, I'll drink to that." They raised their glasses and sipped again. "I do miss Billy." She sighed.

A contemplative silence followed from both of them before Bill broke it by saying, "I've missed you, Laura."

Laura turned to face him, feeling her smile grow slightly less melancholy. He took one of her hands in his and squeezed it, the corners of his mouth turning upwards when she squeezed back. They were silent again for a long time, taking occasional sips from their glasses and enjoying the feeling of tranquillity the other's presence somehow brought them.

Laura finished her drink and set her glass down on the table. She reached for the bottle and held it up to Bill in question.

"No." He waved his hand. "I don't want to drink up your whole stash, you might need it." He put his empty glass down next to hers.

She chuckled, reaching for his other hand as well. "What for? I thought we were going to be on Earth this time next year," she said dryly.

"In which case we'll need it to celebrate," Bill replied, the sparkle in his eyes belying the seriousness of his tone.

Laura smiled again, but somehow her breath turned into a sigh and she closed her eyes, leaning her forehead on his shoulder.

"How are you really?" Bill said quietly. His voice sounded like it came from right next to her ear.

A small, almost bitter laugh erupted from somewhere inside her before she could stop it. "Not so good," she admitted, nodding into his shoulder. "I try to just accept that this is the way things are, that I made my choice and I can't go back now. I try to tell myself that I was wrong about Baltar; after all, no Cylons have come to kill us all and it's been almost a year, but… If this hadn't happened, it could've been so much better." She looked up at him again, shaking her head and smiling despairingly. "What about you, Bill? How are you really?"

Bill let go of one of her hands and reached up to run his fingers across her cheek reassuringly. "Much the same," he said, nodding, his smile as pained as hers. "But I try to remind myself of something a very wise woman once told me. Something about never giving up hope."

Laura grinned despite herself. "Right." She nodded as well and cleared her throat. "You're right."

They smiled, nodding at each other, squeezing each others' hands again.

Then they kissed.

Laura wasn't quite sure how it had happened; one moment she had been looking at his face and the next their lips had been touching. She felt surprised momentarily, but at the same time she was certain that she'd leaned into it just as much as he had.

However it had happened, she didn't want it to stop. So before her rational mind could kick in with doubts and reservations Laura pulled Bill onto the bed with her and blew out the candle.

And then she kissed him again.

She woke up not feeling cold, which surprised her for a second before Bill shifted next to her and she realised he was what was keeping her warm. She smiled at the sight of his sleeping form in the dim light and reached out to run her fingers lightly down his arm.

Bill's eyes blinked open at her touch and fixed on her. "'Morning," he mumbled.

"Good morning." Laura closed her eyes again and let herself enjoy the moment for a short while longer before asking, reluctantly, "Shouln't you be getting back to your ship?"

"Yeah." Bill sighed. "Probably."

Laura nodded slowly as he sat up and began to get dressed.

They said goodbye at the entrance to her tent, hugging tightly.

"Thank you for coming, Bill," Laura said before she pulled away.

"Any time." Bill squeezed her hands one last time and nodded a goodbye. Then he turned and walked away into the morning mist.

Laura watched him wistfully for a moment, then turned and went back inside before the cold could follow her in.

Her tent seemed a little warmer all day.

The end


End file.
